il padrone wrote:Tom just needs to take account of the fact that it has a 1" steerer tube, not the much stronger 1 1/8" that MTBs have. It should be fine for routine riding for many years, but doing kerb drop-offs, pulling wheel stands or other tricky stuff will significantly shorten the fork's lifespan. For any sort of stunt riding he'd need a much tougher MTB, preferably a jumps bike as he's a big lad.

Agree. Never had a crack in the steel 1 1/8" forks I have. Although lighter then, I used to give my Giant rigid 1 1/8" fork a hard time in MTB cross country racing. But it's still going 20+ years later. Because I still jump up & down curbs and regularly do stoppies in emergency braking practice at the end of my rides, I don't ride any 1" steerer frames anymore. I'm 82Kg currently.

il padrone wrote: .... unfortunately, Speedwells never were much more than average road bikes.

il padrone wrote:BTW I am talking about Speedwells from the late 70s through to whenever the brand finally died out.

I'd agree with you re: 70's but you could have made that clear in your first statement.

Fwiw, I know of at least one frame builder that worked at Malvern Star during the late 40's and early 50's tin Sydney that believed the Speedwells (made by Smith Sons & Ree's just down the road) where clearly better made bikes.

I have been fortunate enough to own a few very good Spedwell's from the 30's to the 60's and some truly stunning Speedwell's have pass through my hands over the years. As I mentioned they also produced some very ordinary bikes as well, they had quite a wide range as was common by many Australian bike manufacturers.

Cranky Jim wrote: God did not invent gears. Men invented gears ... because we are not gods.

brentono wrote:Merits of hard wood inside the steerer tube. (though it looks like the rust got to it)Cheers

To stop the steerer pulling away from the lugged crown centre hole?

(And I like your choice of French Blue powdercoat, which I have for my Velosmith as well as Tom's fixie.)

Safety was your priorty."the crack between the steerer tube and the top of the fork crown"Was pointing out, the continuous strain from the original crack, and twisting of the crown,may have been alleviated with hard wood inside the steerer tube. Brake bolt goes throughcrown,steerer tube and the wood, giving support. Also help to prevent sheering.Was a safety point, and quite utilised back in the day (B.C.=before cyclepaths) on racing cycles.Cheers

Blues Good

Lone Rider- I rode on the long, dark road... before I danced under the lights.